Senate approves Anti-Cybercrime Bill of the Philippines (SB 2796)

Anti-CyberCime bill or the Senate Bill (SB) 2796 was approved during its third and final reading last Monday. This bill seeks to establish safeguards in using of the Internet and penalizes cybersex, child pornography on the web, spamming, and other Cybercrimes.

The following offenses are included under SB 2796:

• Offenses against the confidentiality, integrity and availability of computer data and systems (illegal access, illegal interception, data interference, system interference, cyber-squatting, misuse of devices)
• Computer-related offenses (computer-related forgery, computer-related fraud)
• Content-related offenses (cybers*x, child pornography, unsolicited commercial communications, libel)

Under Senate Bill 2796, the following are the penalties of the said offenses:

• Cybers*x defined as “the willful engagement, maintenance, control, or operation, directly or indirectly, of any lascivious exhibition of s*xual organs or sexual activity, with the aid of a computer system” will be imprisoned for 6 to 12 years or made to pay a fine of P200,000 to P1 million.
• Spamming or unsolicited commercial communications defined as the “transmission of commercial electronic communication with the use of a computer system which seek to advertise, sell, or offer for sale products” is punishable with imprisonment of 1 to 6 months or a fine of P50,000 to P250,000.
• Child pornography carries the penalties specified under Republic Act 9775 or the Child Pornography Act of 2009.